The present invention relates to pin ball games, and, in particular, to apparatus for introducing the ball into play in a pin ball game.
In the standard mechanical pin ball game, a ball is introduced into play by means of a manually retractable, spring-biased shooter pin which propels the ball along a guide track to the field of play Certain versions of balltype games provide a manually aimable ball shooter, so that the direction as well as the speed of the ball can be controlled as it enters the field of play. Examples of such games are pin ball games, pistol-type target games, pool games and bowling games.
However while such prior games may provide electromechanical or electronic display or scoring devices, introduction of the ball into play is fundamentally manual. It is known to provide pin ball games with pockets or receptacles into which a ball may fall, the pockets being provided with ejector mechanism for automatically ejecting the ball from the pocket to reintroduce it into the field of play. However, in such mechanisms the direction in which the ball is ejected from the pocket is fixed, and there is no element of skill involved. Such an arrangement is illustrated, for example, in U.S. Pat. No. 3,901,511.